Death of a landmark book stall in Mumbai

ordered their books from the store. Film stars such as Shashi Kapoor and Shammi Kapoor also visited the store, as did industrialists such as JRD Tata and Keshub Mahindra. Everyone was drawn to the shop by the magnificent assortment of books, Mr Shanbhag’s personal care and attention, helpfulness of the staff like Mr Jagat Tekkatte and the 20% discount, unheard of in those days.

Mr Shanbhag brought extraordinary passion and zeal to the task of ensuring good books reached their readers. He was a one-man institution of pioneering customer service in books.iwasstunnedtolearnthat the iconic Strand Book Stall in Fort Mumbai shut shop on February 27, the day Mr Shanbhag passed away in 2009. Strand has been a landmark store in Mumbaiforalmostsevendecades.itis the end of an era.

With the advent of online e-commerce options, the sales of brick and mortar shops were bound to suffer. Now, online sites send books to our homes within a day, at 10% to 20% discounts. So single-store formats ended up making losses.

The closure of Strand Book Stall also signifies some decline in the reading habit. Online reading sites are convenient, but really no substitute for carrying a paperback or hardbound book on a train or flight journey, with a pencil or highlighter in hand, underlining new words or attention-grabbing phrases to enrich your vocabulary.

With the closure of Strand Book Stall, a part of my youth has vanished forever. I had not imagined that I would be upset with the closure of a book stall. But my heart is sad.

THE ICONIC STRAND BOOK STALL IN FORT MUMBAI SHUT SHOP ON FEBRUARY 27, THE DAY MR SHANBHAG PASSED AWAY IN 2009. IT HAD BEEN A LANDMARK STORE FOR SEVEN DECADES